Everything’s shipshape when it comes to military procurement, Defence department says

The Department of National Defence is pushing a new public message about its purchases of military hardware: whether it’s submarines or ships, it’s all a success story.

The government, DND and Public Works and Government Services Canada have been under fire for the last several years for bungling billions of dollars of military purchases. But a recently developed public relations strategy outlining the “overarching messages” that department officials are to use tells a different story.

“We continue to see success in delivering on the Canada First Defence Strategy, with numerous defence procurement and maintenance milestones in recent years,” noted the document leaked to the Citizen.

Among the success stories, according to the document, is the navy’s Victoria-class submarine program. The document noted that refits are completed on two of the boats, while a third is in the process of being returned to sea. The public relations strategy doesn’t, however, detail the more than 10-year delay in getting the subs fully operational, a fatal fire on board one of the vessels, or the 2011 crash when one of the boats rammed into the ocean floor.

The messages were developed in October and are designed to form the core of what politicians and defence officials will say in public.

The messages highlight the purchase of C-17 and C-130J transport aircraft and the ongoing upgrade to the light armoured vehicles. Also to be highlighted is the purchase of Leopard tanks and the fleet tactical armoured patrol vehicles.

In addition, the document also points to the success of the Close Combat Vehicle project, which it noted would deliver the first vehicle of the fleet by the end of 2015.

But that $2-billion project was abruptly cancelled in December, a move military officers say was related to a lack of money.

Defence Minister Rob Nicholson relied on the new messaging when he answered NDP MP Jack Harris in the Commons on Monday. Harris was asking when the military would receive new search and rescue aircraft, pointing out that the project is years behind schedule.

But Nicholson didn’t answer, instead responding that, “there has been a number of huge successes in the area of procurement: the C-17 Globemasters; Hercules; medium-support vehicles; Leopard tanks.”

Harris said while it is common for a government to highlight its successes, parliamentarians rarely receive straight answers from Conservatives about the billions of tax dollars spent on military equipment.

“You’ll notice Nicholson never answered the actual question so we still don’t know when we’ll get new search and rescue aircraft,” said Harris.

Canadian Forces spokesman Capt. Alexandre Munoz stated in an email Friday that such details will be released to industry “in the coming months.”

Nicholson said the department will publish a guide sometime this year that will list key military equipment intentions. He has noted that the government aims to be transparent about such purchases.

Other defence ministers have used different strategies to relay information about military procurements.

Defence Minister Peter MacKay often countered that those raising concerns about equipment programs “were against the troops.”

In 2008, when NDP MPs Catherine Bell and Dawn Black asked about the purchase of the search and rescue planes, he accused them of working against Canadian soldiers and of being “in the Communist corner.”

Liberal defence critic Joyce Murray said the government’s communications strategy is designed to hide the large-scale failure of defence procurement. “There has been serial mismanagement of these complex portfolios,” she said.

dpugliese@ottawacitizen.com

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Problem Procurements

Army trucks: The Conservative government’s project to buy new trucks for the army was announced in 2006. But shortly after, it became mired in problems and had to be restarted a number of times. A contract has yet to be announced but one industry official estimated the new trucks won’t be in the army’s hands until at least until 2018, putting the project a decade behind schedule.

Fixed-Wing Search and Rescue Aircraft: The Liberals announced this project in 2004 as a priority but under the Conservatives it has floundered. In 2008, then defence minister Peter MacKay announced the planes would be bought in 2009. Government officials say they will have more details on the project in the coming months.

CF-18 Fighter Replacement: The Conservative government committed to buying the controversial F-35 in 2010. Faced with allegations it misled Parliament and the public about the cost and capabilities of the stealth jet, the government put the purchase on hold. Government officials haven’t released details on when new jets will be purchased but industry analysts don’t expect a decision until after the 2015 election.

Close Combat Vehicle: Heralded by MacKay as a key army project, the purchase of these armoured vehicles was abruptly cancelled in December. Lack of money was the reason, say industry and military officials.

Cyclone Helicopter: This $5-billion-plus program was started under the Liberals in 2005. Because of ongoing problems, the Conservative government renegotiated the deal. It is not clear when the first helicopter will be delivered and accepted by the RCAF.

Joint Support Ships: First announced in 2004 by the Liberals, then re-announced in 2006 by the Conservatives, this transport ship project has had more than its share of problems. Bids were cancelled in 2008 and the project restarted. Construction of the vessels hasn’t started but the navy expects the ships will not be ready until 2019-2020.

Maritime Multi-mission Aircraft: Part of the Conservative’s Canada First Defence Strategy, the purchase of the aircraft was set for 2020. Budget cuts have delayed that acquisition until at least 2030.